Boom!
In the southeast, a blazing inferno suddenly erupted, flames surging into the heavens. The firelight flared so bright and fierce that it seemed like a phoenix breaking free of the clouds, dyeing the sky in the crimson of a burning sunset.
Mu Jialing and Yu Zhenyan both turned their heads at once. The red glow spilled across their pale faces, casting stark shadows as their pupils constricted.
"What happened over there? Is Pei Xianqiao in that direction?" Yu Zhenyan immediately assumed it was her doing.
The flames rose higher, thick smoke rolling in the sky. Even from this distance, a powerful wave of spiritual pressure radiated outward.
Yao Ranran could never have created such a terrifying scene. Only Pei Xianqiao, always secretive and strange, might have a hidden power unknown to anyone else.
Yu Zhenyan's eyes darkened. That wretched girl Pei Xianqiao… it would be best if she perished in that fire.
"If it's Pei Daoyou, she has the ability to escape. But if it's Fairy Ranran…" Mu Jialing frowned deeply.
Yao Ranran's cultivation was only at the first layer of Qi Refinement, little stronger than an ordinary mortal. How could she possibly survive inside such a fire?
"Yu Daoyou, this monk must go and check the flames first." Mu Jialing tried to rise despite his heavy wounds, but before he could straighten fully, a mouthful of blood forced its way up, spilling onto the stone floor in a vivid splash of red.
Yu Zhenyan reached out to steady him, but Mu Jialing half-knelt and held up a hand to stop her.
"This foolish monk! Even at a time like this, he clung to the Buddhist precepts, unwilling to let a woman touch him.:
Annoyance prickled at Yu Zhenyan's heart. She only wanted to help, yet he would rather kneel on the ground, as if the mere touch of a woman's hand could ruin his precious purity.
"What a waste of that beautiful face. Just like Elder Shen Yuefu, another abstinent man. Were their handsome features given by Heaven only to torment women?"
If he weren't a Fózǐ, if Shen Yuefu weren't an Elder, perhaps she would have taken them for herself, just like her mother Xing Rui once seized men and raised them in the Yu family.
But these two, she could not touch.
Yu Zhenyan forced away her distracting thoughts, lowered her lashes, and said sweetly, "Has the Fózǐ forgotten that I am here? Such a small matter, I can handle it. Yao Ranran is my half-sister. I came into this place for the sake of taking her back to recognize her bloodline. Her safety is my responsibility."
Mu Jialing coughed, unable to suppress it. He hesitated at first, but with the fire raging higher and higher, there was no time for doubt.
"Yu Daoyou, then I will entrust Fairy Ranran to you…"
Yu Zhenyan lifted her chin in pride, a delicate smile curving her lips. "Fózǐ may rest assured. I will search with all my strength and bring Yao Ranran out with me."
Light flashed as she flew swiftly toward the southeastern courtyard.
"Cough… cough…" Mu Jialing pressed a hand over his mouth, blood seeping between his fingers, his complexion growing paler still.
"Though this monk does not meddle in worldly matters, Fairy Ranran's reputation is too widespread. The Yu clan head himself spread word of their blood ties. How could I not understand Xing Rui's deep resentment toward Fairy Ranran…"
He dissolved the blood in his palm with his spiritual power, thin tendrils of smoke curling upward. Lifting his head, his neck was touched by the glow of the firelight in the southeast. Reflected in his eyes were two bright points of flame, like stars shining in a winter night sky.
Slowly, Mu Jialing closed his eyes.
—
In Elder Yang's house, inside the alchemy chamber.
[Strange Round Pill: A failed product? No one knows its true purpose.]
"Even the Ancient Appraisal Mirror can't identify it. Is this pill an immortal medicine or a poison?" Yao Ranran let out a long sigh.
"A pill whose effects are unknown, and with a crack across it… who would pay a good price for such a thing?"
She collapsed back against the floor in defeat, staring at the dim light above. "I wonder how things are outside. Should I go take a look?"
Her gaze drifted across the reddened walls…
Forget it. If the sky falls, the heroine will hold it up. If she can't, then the male supporting lead Mu Jialing will. Why should she worry?
She was just a doomed side character, the so-called venomous rival. Whenever she stood near the heroine, all fortune flowed to the heroine, leaving her with scraps.
Now that even the scraps were gone, why go looking for danger?
She was only a weak little cultivator at the first layer of Qi Refinement.
Crossing her legs lazily, Yao Ranran cast a distracted glance toward the passage Elder Shang had fled through.
A sudden heat stirred at her waist. She scratched absentmindedly, eyes still on the direction Elder Shang had gone.
"Had he found that heart yet?"
…
"Had he found that heart yet?"
The clear voice of a young woman rippled through Mu Jialing's mind like a quiet stream. His furrowed brows eased, his expression smoothing into calm.
So Fairy Ranran was not in the burning courtyard.
He began to open his eyes.
"Wait! Elder Shang had been trapped in the furnace before he escaped. Could he have overheard anything about the heart hidden inside the Divine Tree Jianmu?"
His lashes trembled, but he kept his eyes closed.
What were Fairy Ranran's words about Elder Shang, the heart, and the Divine Tree Jianmu?
—
Inside the alchemy chamber, Yao Ranran suddenly sat up, staring at the dark tunnel in silence.
"If Elder Shang knew nothing of the heart… could Pei Xianqiao discover it?"
…
"If Elder Shang knew nothing of the heart… could Pei Xianqiao discover it?"
Mu Jialing's eyes flew open.
What heart?
He had borrowed the power of the Heart-linking Jade only to sense Yao Ranran's condition.
He had not expected to overhear such strange words.
A heart hidden within the Divine Tree Jianmu?
His gaze deepened. He could tell that Fairy Ranran was in a safe place, otherwise her thoughts would not have been so untroubled.
Yet the words she had mentioned—master's heart, Divine Tree Jianmu, Elder Shang—could not be ignored.
Mu Jialing turned toward the towering Jianmu. Pressing his palms together, his pale face was serene, compassion shining in his expression.
"Amitabha. This monk means no offense. I only wish to find a way to break free, to bring everyone safely out of Yan Fortress…"
He closed his eyes again.
At her waist, Yao Ranran still hadn't noticed the Heart-linking Jade had fused to her skin like a brand.
Thinking to herself that Pei Xianqiao, as the heroine, would surely discover the secret, she lay down once more in peace.
"Speaking of which, that Jianmu entrance is really well hidden. If I hadn't seen Grandpa Yang come out of it, I'd never have guessed the tree had tunnels stretching beneath the entire Yan Fortress."
So that was it.
Listening, Mu Jialing instantly understood more of the Jianmu's mysteries.
"Fózǐ! Yao Ranran is not in there!" Yu Zhenyan's voice rang out as she returned swiftly from the southeast.
Even before her light had landed, her voice called him back to awareness.
Mu Jialing's eyes opened wide. "Yu Daoyou, to the roots of the Divine Tree Jianmu!"
"What?" Yu Zhenyan's glow faded, revealing her startled expression.
Sacred light flickered in Mu Jialing's eyes, his brow solemn. "Yu Daoyou, there is no time to explain. I must trouble you to take this monk beneath the Jianmu, quickly!"
===
Ugh, I really hate that jade's function Mu Jialing gave to Yao Ranran (눈_눈)
She only knew it was some kind of active communication device, but she had no idea that it could monitor her physique and health, or even listen to her inner thoughts which Mu Jialing could then see and sense. Like… seriously?! (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
I get it, the function is an important link for this arc, but it still annoys me so much. Mu Jialing is described as a Fózǐ with a pure and firm heart, yet he gave Yao Ranran that jade without telling her the truth. That's honestly creepy (¬_¬).
How could he do that to her? Even if they're just friends, or even if he has no romantic feelings toward her, it doesn't justify it. What he did is still wrong. And because of that, I hate Mu Jialing